Abstract: The present disclosure relates to systems, methods, and computer readable media for optimizing resource allocation on a computing zone based on bursting data and in accordance with an allocation policy. For example, systems disclosed herein may implement a lifetime-aware allocation of computing resources to facilitate computational bursting on respective server nodes to prioritize different aspects of performance on the server nodes of a cloud computing system. The systems described herein provide a number of benefits, including, by way of example, facilitating an allocation policy that enables more densely packing virtual machines on respective server nodes, boosting individual virtual machine performance, and reducing a buffer of empty nodes that need to be maintained on one or more node clusters. This may include more densely packing virtual machines on respective server nodes.